Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy

Analysis:

This story is a display of how news outlets can do damage to the community. It is reported that a man breaks into the homes of elderly woman and touches them wearing no clothes. Now the story says he touches their toes, which would not qualify as Criminal Sexual Conduct (CSC), but clearly there are crimes being committed, both Breaking & Entering and Indecent Exposure. What is disturbing about how this story was reported is that both news readers laughed during the story and used questionable voice inflections throughout the story.

Story:

WZZM 13 Newsreader #1 – In Florida, Police are looking for a looking for an unusual suspect in New Smyrna Beach tonight. Now get this, for the last four years a naked serial tickler has been targeting elderly women over the summer. Authorities say he breaks in their homes, and tickles their toes while they are asleep. All the while, he is in the nude. No one has been able to give a good description of the man other than he’s always running away wearing nothing but a ponytail. Now that is some fetish.

Newsreader #2 – I know that the police that are on foot patrol…

Newsreader #1 – (laughing)

Newsreader #2- …are hoping to nail him.

Newsreader #1 – They’re watching. Oh goodness.

Total Time: 35 seconds

Analysis:

This article is strictly about the number of times that the various candidates have voted in elections since 1998. The article frames this topic as a young versus old issue, noting that the younger candidates generally had not voted as often as the older candidates. The article provides the ages of several of the candidates as well as the number of elections they had voted in. Also included in the article were quotes from the candidates about either there own or their opponents voting record. The only other information included in the article is some census information about the percentage of 18 to 29 year olds that vote.

While a voting record does provide one indicator of how involved a particular person has been in following local politics, it does not tell the whole story. There are plenty of other ways that someone can be involved in the community and in local politics that does not involve voting. So for instance, actions such as writing or visiting elected representatives, giving money to political causes, or being part of an advocacy group are all ways that some of these candidates have been involved with politics that don’t entail voting. Aside from that, the more important thing to point out is that this article does not tell the reader anything about where the candidate stands on issues. So while a reader might be impressed that a candidate has consistently voted in every election, this information is not much use to the reader if the candidate has consistently voted for things the reader might not agree with. We have yet to see in the Grand Rapids press an in-depth look at what the GR city commission candidates stand for, and what their platforms are.

Story:

Voting becomes issue for commission candidates
Friday, July 22, 2005
By STEVEN HARMON
THE GRAND RAPIDS PRESS

GRAND RAPIDS — For some Grand Rapids City Commission candidates, voting is a way of life. For others, particularly the young, it’s an afterthought. At least, it had been.

Two of the 11 candidates own perfect voting records since 1998, when the city clerk’s office began keeping tallies in the Qualified Voters File.

First Ward Commissioner James Jendrasiak and one of his challengers, Mary Milanowski, have voted in all 24 elections since 1998.

The worst voting records belong to the candidates younger than 35: Evvia Marshall, Rosalynn Bliss, Dan Tietema, and John Clark, all voted in less than half of the elections. Clark said this week he’s dropping out of the race, but it’s too late to remove his name from the ballot.

Voting records typically become an issue in races, and Shaula Johnston, who is vying to replace outgoing 2nd Ward Commissioner Lynn Rabaut, has made it so against Bliss, who has voted in six of 23 elections.

“Why is it that (Bliss) sat on the sidelines?” asked Johnston, who voted in 20 of the last 23 elections. “If she’s so concerned about my city, why doesn’t she ever vote in my city?”

Bliss, 29, said a combination of things kept her from the polls.

“I was working full time, going to school full time,” she said. “You’re creating your space in the world, developing roots. As you feel more connected, you feel you need to get involved. With age, it’s true, we learn how important voting is.”

Art Kroon, 64, also a 2nd Ward candidate who has voted in 18 of 23 elections, said, “you vote because you care about your government and the city, and if you don’t, it’s because you don’t care. I don’t know how you can be an effective voice for others if you’ve been silent at the polls.”

Marshall, 25, who is challenging 3rd Ward Commissioner Jim White, voted in five of the past 20 elections since she registered in 1999. White has voted in 22 of 23 elections since 1998.

Younger voters don’t feel connected to the political process, Marshall said.

“If you’re not represented, it’s hard for a younger person to be motivated to vote,” she said. “That’s why I’m running, to get younger people more involved.”

A national survey among 18- to 29-year-olds showed nearly 60 percent agreed with the statement that “having more young people in office would make government and politics better.”

In last year’s presidential election, turnout among voters ages 18 to 29 rose to 51.6 percent, from 42.3 percent in 2000. But participation among young voters has been on the decline — by 13 percent — since 18-year olds were given the right to vote in 1972, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Dan Tietema, 35, also challenging White, has voted in 10 of the past 23 elections, and passed over all local elections until he cast a ballot in a Kent Intermediate School District special election in February, 2004.

“My interest in politics really started at the national scene and the state,” he said. “My commitment to the city didn’t get started until recently.”

White, 65, says he votes to stay in touch with the issues. “If you put forth the effort to vote, it encourages you to get information,” he said.

Dave Shaffer, 26, challenging Jendrasiak in the 1st Ward, has voted five times since he first registered in October, 2000 — a span of 15 elections. Since he moved to Grand Rapids in May of 2004, he has voted in three of four races.

“It’s become important since my wife and I became established here,” Shaffer said.

Jendrasiak, 51, lamented the lack of participation among young voters, although he declined to criticize opponents.

“As soon as we get that right to vote, we should be exercising it and becoming involved in the process,” he said.

Milanowski, 64, said she used to tell her children on Election Day, when they first began to vote, “bring back that little ‘I Voted’ sticker if you want dinner tonight.”

Analysis:

This story was essentially a promotional piece for the US Military. Only a Military Recruiter and recent enlistee’s voices were heard. Viewers are not told that these new monetary incentives will be paid for by tax dollars, just the amounts are mentioned. The recruiter tells viewers that the reasons that people are signing up are because of “Patriotism” and “9/11”, but neither the recruiter nor the reporter verify if this indeed is based on fact. Considering that the new enlistee in the story is Latina and that other video b-roll used shows a young African American male talking to a recruiter, maybe race or poverty might be a factor in people signing up. With an issue as serious as joining the military it is extremely important for reporters to provide multiple perspectives on this issue.

Story:

WXMI 17 News reader – With an ongoing war in the Middle East military recruiters nationwide are having trouble meeting their goals. Congress is spending more than $460 million in recruitment and retention bonuses, which has some local recruiters dangling some big bucks.

Reporter – Well the war may be a deterrent in some places according to recruiters not here. Army National Guard Recruiters are offering $10,000 bonuses for new recruits, $15,000 if you have prior service. Of course, there is no way to tell if you will be deployed, a deal breaker for some. But here in West Michigan recruiters say it’s still fertile ground for fresh troops.

Reporter – A scene that happens thousands of times a day all across the country. Sgt. Valez and Jannelle Moncada discussing her orders to ship out.

Female who recently enlisted – Because it’s exciting. I need excitement.

Reporter – Jannelle signed up for 6 years part time, a small victory for a military struggling to fulfill the recruitment quotas. With National Guard and Reserve deployments to Iraq becoming common.

Recruiter – Mom and Dad have concerns, they have concerns, but we tell them you can’t go anywhere until you finish high school. You got to finish basic training, you got to finish job training, but there is a chance that you will be deployed. They need to understand that when they join that there is a chance that they could be deployed.

Reporter – So it is up to recruiters to do some hard selling, college money, training, and thousands of dollars in bonuses. Jannelle understands that shipping out to war is part of the job.

Female who recently enlisted – That is a risk I have to take. I mean it has been in our heads and that is why we have been contemplated whether to do it.

Reporter – Nationwide recruiters might be struggling, but here in West Michigan the Guard has already met their numbers for the year and recruiters say it’s all not about bonuses and college money.

Recruiter – Patriotism, they want to serve. I have been recruiting for almost 13 years now. I did 8 and a half years Army Recruiting and I have seen a lot of stuff. Since 9/11 came on there is a lot of people that want to serve their country.

Reporter – Exciting is what Jannelle is looking for even though some of her friends think she’s crazy.

Female who recently enlisted – Maybe, but oh well. It sounds like fun.

Reporter – Jannelle will be assigned to the 1073rd Maintenance Company in Greenville. Last October 200 of them were sent to Iraq. Heads off to basic training, Fort Jackson, South Carolina.

Total Time: 2 minutes and 13 seconds

Analysis:

There are less than two weeks until the August 2nd primary vote, and WZZM has yet to give viewers any substantive information about any of the candidates. This piece is a good example of this trend. In the piece it is reported that the Mayor is endorsing candidate Rosalynn Bliss. What was not reported are Mayor Heartwell’s reasons for endorsing Bliss. Nor was Bliss interviewed or any part of her platform or issue positions explored. This is true of WZZM’s coverage of all the candidates for the upcoming primary election, whether they be Grand Rapids City commission, library board, or Wyoming Mayor.

While the newsreader lists the names of the candidates for the second ward, the candidates for the first and third wards are not even mentioned as, according to the newsreader, these races may not “hotly contested.” The piece seems to imply that since there is an incumbent running in the third and first wards, that somehow these races will not be competitive and therefore do not merit reporting. It is worth asking if this sort of attitude toward races involving incumbents serves to help the viewer become and informed voter.

As with the handful of other election related stories aired on WZZM 13, this piece ends with the newsreader noting that if viewers want to learn more about the candidates, to visit the links provided on http://www.wzzm.org. In the online version of this story, a link is provided that goes to a Kent County page that lists the candidates name. This page provides no other information about the candidates, nor is any information provided on WZZM’s website.

Story:

WZZM 13 Newsreader – the political season is heating up in Grand Rapids with primary elections right around the corner. Now this year the vote in August includes several races in city government. This morning Mayor George Heatwell endorsed a city commission candidate in Ward 2. the Mayor lives in that district and says that he has chosen to endorse Rosalynn Bliss. She is running for an open seat currently held by Lynn Rabaut who has chosen not to run again. In the Aug 2nd primary election Bliss will be up against Shaula Johnston and Arthur Croon. In addition to that race, wards one and three have multiple candidates, but both have incumbents seeking reelection, so those may not be as hotly contested as ward two should be.

And on a related note, something that will be new for those going to the polls in August; no more punch cards in Grand Rapids. Today poll volunteers learned how to use the new optical scanning machines. They were paid for with federal money from the Help America Vote Act. If you want to see all the candidates who are running in the primary, just go to news links at WZZM13.com

Total Time: 59 seconds

Analysis:

This article is a rather lengthy piece by newspaper standards and does contain quite a bit of information. The article points out various purchases made by state representatives with money from their campaigns for things such as football tickets, travel, car leases, and even livestock. The bulk of the article is devoted to mentioning specific cases of this type of spending behavior, quoting several state reps about these expenses as well as donors on their thoughts on the issue. Of all these cases mentioned, the most money involved in any of them is 2600 dollars and the article does point out that none of them are actually illegal, or unethical in any official sense of the word. The only critical voice mentioned in the article is Rich Robinson from the Michigan Campaign Finance Network, who calls the expenditures “questionable”.

One thing worth noting is that this article was accompanied by several charts, one listing who much money various state reps raised and how much came from PACs, another chart of the largest state PACs and how much they give, and a third box about how State Rep Kooiman has proposed a bill doubling the amount of money an individual may donate to a candidate. None of the issues raised by these charts were addressed by the article as the article was about how candidates spend money, the charts about how they get their money. This question of how they get there money, when juxtaposed with information such as how they voted, is very important information that readers should know if they are to be informed voters. One other thing worth noting that was not addressed in this article is the fact that Michigan is, according to the Center for Public integrity, one of three states that does not have a disclosure law. That means that in Michigan, State reps are not required to disclose their personal finances or investments in order to ensure against any possible conflict of interests.

Story:

Political cash buys trips, tickets, giveaways
Sunday, July 17, 2005By Steven Harmon

The Grand Rapids Press

GRAND RAPIDS — For a third straight year, University of Michigan football games will be on the house for some supporters of state Rep. Jerry Kooiman.

Kooiman and Rep. Bill Huizenga, for his second straight year, plan to dole out tickets they will pay for with money from their political action committees.

But Rep. Michael Sak, D-Grand Rapids, says he is getting out of the perk business. He bought two U-M season tickets for $570 in 2004 but now says he has repaid his campaign committee for them.

Sak also bought $36 hockey tickets for volunteers and an $11 ticket to a Tigers game for a volunteer, according to campaign finance documents covering 2003-2004.

“I’ve reconsidered my decision and reimbursed my campaign account with personal funds,” Sak said. “Just to close the books on the entire issue.”

Football isn’t every legislator’s bag. Others use their campaign funds for conferences — one West Michigan lawmaker traveled to Alaska last year — car leases, golf outings, even 4-H pigs.

To be sure, the expenditures are not illegal. Candidate PAC money is intended to go toward electing candidates or paying office expenses, according to Michigan campaign finance law.

But that can be broadly interpreted. Officeholders and candidates can claim that most of what they do promotes their candidacy.

“Ultimately, you’re responsible to your donors,” said Huizenga, R-Zeeland. “If people think I’m abusing their campaign donations, they’ll quit sending money. And that hasn’t happened.”

Donors don’t give so they can go to the football games, but to gain access to the power of an officeholder, said Rich Robinson of the Michigan Campaign Finance Network, a nonpartisan watchdog group in Lansing. He called the football tickets a questionable use of money intended for campaign purposes.

“It would be difficult to say expenditures like these are truly necessary as a function of being an officeholder,” Robinson said.

Former Grand Rapids state Sen. Glenn Steil, now running two businesses in Florida, said dipping into campaign chests is like the old practice of using officeholder expense accounts, which were outlawed during the 1990s, when lawmakers were found to have used them for parties, game tickets and extra staff.

“It’s nonsense,” said Steil, a vocal opponent of officeholder expenses when he was in the Legislature from 1994 to 2002. “It’s not the intention of what giving to politicians is for. To buy tickets to U-M games, which they are already assured of getting — they already have a seat when they want one — is not what campaign donors are paying to get politicians re-elected for.”

Holly Hoats, of Caledonia, contributed $250 to Kooiman last year and said she has no problems with however Kooiman uses his contributions.

“It doesn’t bother me at all (that he used contributions for football tickets),” she said. “I view it like any other business. To win people over to your ideas, you try to entertain them.”

Legislators get a base salary of $79,650, along with extra stipends for leadership posts. House members also receive office expenses: $96,500 for majority Republicans and $94,500 for minority Democrats, which largely pay for staff salaries. Senate members get office allotments of $58,425, with another Senate account paying for staff salaries.

Lawmakers further are reimbursed for one round trip a week to their districts, along with in-district travel.

Kooiman, a Grand Rapids Republican, has bought four season tickets two years in a row for a total of $2,362, at a time when he was aiming for the chairmanship of the House Appropriations Committee chairman.

“I used them to build up support within my campaign for leadership,” he said. “And to develop friendships and relationships with incoming members. And it was a way to thank supporters for their involvement.”

Kooiman was passed over for the Appropriations chair earlier this year but elected speaker pro tem, the second in line to the speaker.

Huizenga, who failed in his pursuit of the speakership last fall, bought two U-M season tickets last year for $570 out of his campaign funds. He recently bought another pair of U-M season tickets.

One politician’s reasoning

“It’s no different than if I’m buying tickets to an Ottawa County Lincoln Day dinner,” he said. “You invite supporters or volunteers.”

Last year, he said, he didn’t attend any of the games, giving tickets to volunteers, supporters, staff members and, in one case, a lobbyist.

The gift to the lobbyist, he said, was just by chance; he met the lobbyist in line at a cafe after he had difficulty giving the tickets away.

He said ticket giveaways were legal and ethical.

“Legally, I could buy clothes — suits and ties,” Huizenga said. “Do I do that? No. If it’s anything you’re doing that promotes yourself in the advancement of your political office, that’s designated as campaign-related.”

No other Grand Rapids-area lawmaker bought season football tickets.

Senate Majority Leader Kenneth Sikkema, R-Wyoming, has used his leadership PAC money to pay for a car lease for the past two years rather than take state reimbursements.

Rep. Gary Newell’s most extravagant buy was a couple of 4-H pigs last year at the Ionia County youth meat sale for $863.75.

The Saranac Republican also paid $811.15 to Western Wats, a polling company, for automated calls out of Orem, Utah.

“They were all ‘vote for me’ calls,” Newell said.

An early candidate for the speakership and then Appropriations chairman last fall, Newell said it never occurred to him to cultivate support with game tickets.

“No football days,” said Newell, who also was co-chair of the House Republican Campaign Committee. “My primary goal was to get people elected.”

Newell said former Speaker Rick Johnson never opened a leadership fund, but got elected with his personal touch.

“I voted for him because early in my campaign, he made it to a couple of my fund-raisers, one at 7 in the morning in Hastings,” Newell said. “But there wasn’t any money or perks.”

Kooiman said schmoozing at high-profile events is a way of life in the capital.

“Do I like the fact that I had to raise money to obtain a leadership position in Lansing? No,” he said. “I’d prefer to have an election simply based on who you are, your experience and your qualifications. But that is a fairly naive way of looking at how things happen.”

Rep. Fulton Sheen, R-Plainwell, spent $2,600 in travel and lodging in 2003-2004, including $947 for a trip last year to Anchorage, Alaska, for a Council of State Governments conference.

It was one of seven conferences Sheen attended He also went to Boyne Mountain ski and golf resort, Crystal Mountain resort near Cadillac, and Washington, D.C.

Sheen said conference-hopping is an appropriate use of his campaign contributions. He attended a National Commissioners of Insurance and Legislators conference last weekend in Rhode Island. (His wife, Shirley, also went, but they paid for that separately.)

“Wherever you go, if it’s to learn about people, or fostering trade relations, or if you’re meeting with other legislators at conferences to network, all that pertains to what you’re doing as a legislator,” Sheen said.

Analysis:

On Saturday July 16, the Grand Rapids Press ran a story about President Bush’s promoting the Central American Free Trade agreement. This was one of the few articles we have seen in the Grand Rapids Press concerning CAFTA, and it was framed exclusively from the president’s perspective. The article is not very long and President Bush is the only voice quoted in it. These quotes from the president are from a speech he gave in North Carolina in which he promoted CAFTA as part of the “War on Terror”. In the article Bush says “It (CAFTA) will advance a key part of our foreign policy” and that “It is in our interest that those democracies (Central American) be strong and viable. There are still forces that oppose democratic government there.” The article also goes on to state that Bush believes that CAFTA would help bring jobs to the US. Again, to Quote Bush; “t’s a pro-jobs bill. It’s a pro-growth bill, it’s a pro-democracy bill.” The reporter does not follow those comments with any countering voices, nor does he provide any contextual information with which the reader could use to judge the accuracy of Bush’s claims about CAFTA.

One piece of contextual information the reporter could have mentioned is NAFTA, which is the model upon which CAFTA is designed. NAFTA has been in place for over a decade and some data about the results it has had in terms of jobs and economic growth would be very relevant. Also, the reporter does nothing to challenge the idea that CAFTA is somehow related to the “war on terror” or that CAFTA will lead to an increase in democracy. The article does not tell the reader who even is opposed to CAFTA, only that it is “endangered” and that House leaders hope to vote on it before August. No Republican or democratic house members opposed to CAFTA are presented in this article, nor are Labor voices, human rights organizations, environmental organizations, or any voices actually from Central America. We at GRIID have noted that by and large, the voices that get published in the local media tend to be official voices, particularly on issues of international news. So it is hardly surprising, although rather unfortunate for the reader, that this article on CAFTA contained only one perspective, that of the President.

Story:

DALLAS, N.C. –
President Bush portrayed an endangered free-trade treaty as another front in the global war on terror Friday, suggesting his Central America Free Trade Agreement was not only good for commerce but for shoring up fragile democracies in the region.

“It’s in our interest that those democracies be strong and viable. There are still forces that oppose democratic government there,” he said. “There are forces that are hostile to our interests. It will help advance a key part of our foreign policy.”

Bush made his pitch in a state where GOP support for the pact is weak, and with a visit to a textile plant, where critics suggest jobs could be jeopardized by the measure.

Bush suggested the legislation, which passed the Senate earlier this month but faces a tough time in the House, would help bring more jobs to the United States, not send them fleeing.

“It’s a pro-jobs bill. It’s a pro-growth bill. It’s a pro-democracy bill,” Bush said.

Bush toured the R.L. Stowe Mills plant in nearby Belmont, N.C., and stood among giant spools of white cotton thread and 480-pound bales of raw cotton. Then he appealed for the treaty’s support in a speech to an invitation-only audience at the Gaston Community College here.

“Get that bill to my desk,” Bush said in remarks aimed at Congress.

The trade agreement, signed by the United States a year ago, would end or sharply lower trade barriers with the Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. It would also apply to the Dominican Republic, a Caribbean nation.

House leaders have said they hope to bring up the measure before Congress breaks for its August recess.

Text from the original article ommitted from the Grand Rapids Press version:

But it faces near-solid Democratic opposition and only lukewarm GOP support.

Bush’s visit was to the district of Rep. Sue Myrick (news, bio, voting record), R-N.C., alone among North Carolina’s 13-member House delegation to publicly endorse the measure. She accompanied him on Air Force One.

Ahead of his visit, Bush met at the White House with President Antonio Saca of El Salvador, one of the countries that is a party to the trade agreement. The two leaders sat alongside each other in the Oval Office during a brief picture-taking session.

North Carolina is one of the hotbeds of opposition to the pact, which is modeled on the North American Free Trade Agreement passed 12 years ago that established free trade among the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Critics contend CAFTA will cost U.S. jobs by making it easier for U.S. companies to relocate operations in Central America, where labor costs are lower. The White House argues the opposite, asserting it will bring jobs to the United States.

Also, Bush suggested stimulating the economies of Central America could also help reduce illegal immigration. Workers could “find a job close at home, rather than sneak into the United States to find a job,” he said.

The textile industry itself is divided on the pact.

The trip gave the president an opportunity to briefly escape the fierce political debate in Washington surrounding his chief political adviser and deputy chief of staff, Karl Rove. The adviser is at the center of a federal investigation into a 2003 news leak that exposed the identity of a CIA officer.

But there were reminders of the flap even here. Someone in a small group of protesters held a sign that said, “Fire Bush’s Brain,” as Bush’s motorcade went by. It was a reference to an irreverent Rove nickname.

Rove was along on the trip.

In a playful moment, Rove reached into a reporter’s backpack and pulled out a half-filled container of Tylenol PM. He handed it back to the reporter, and joked, “You look like you need this.”

Analysis:

This story is framed purely as a partisan story. Viewers are given opinions from both sides without being informed about the issues surrounding the story. Read the comments from both Republicans and Democrats and ask yourself if anything they said informs you. The reporter states at one point “If a picture is worth a thousand words the message here can’t be missed – George Bush is standing by top aide Karl Rove.” Indeed, the message is hard to miss, yet the story never delves deeper into questions posed by the photo, questions relating to national security and the War on Terrorism and their connection to the Administrations defensive attitude towards Rove. Reporters must provide independent perspectives, particularly if they provide viewers with substantive analysis.

Story:

WXMI 17 News reader – Tonight top Presidential aide Karl Rove is under increasing fire from Democrats. They say he ought to be immediately punished for leaking a CIA operative’s identity, but Republicans are saying slow down and is joining the White House in calling for a ceasefire during the investigation.

Reporter – Two ways to look at this depending on your politics, it’s either small time in-fighting or another Watergate in the making. But folks on both sides of the fight know it is not about to die down. If a picture is worth a thousand words the message here can’t be missed – George Bush is standing by top aide Karl Rove. This as administration critics are ramping up their rhetoric. They want Rove canned, short of that…

Democratic Congressman Schumer – Mr. President I urge you to take a stand, do the right thing, and immediately suspend Karl Roves’ security clearance.

Reporter – Democrats say a Time Magazine reporter’s recently revealed notes prove Rove is behind the leak with the CIA operative’s name. He could be guilty of a felony.

Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean – Who do you value more Mr. President; intelligence operatives defending the United States of America or do you value a political operative from Texas? We are going to find out.

Republican Senator Coleman – Let us let the special council finish his work, let’s put the partisan attacks aside, lets cool down the rhetoric…

Reporter – As Republicans publicly keep up their support for Rove, some are starting to wonder, will this hurt efforts to push their agenda? Then there is the ex-CIA operative’s husband. He claims the White House outted his wife and is now smearing him because he spoke out against the administration’s Iraq policy.

Former US Ambassador Joe Wilson – This is a question of whether the national security of our country was violated.

Reporter – And many here in the nation’s capitol say they are surprised the White House isn’t doing more to publicly back Rove, the man whom some jokingly refer to as Bush’s Brain. The President himself says he’s not going to comment on the matter until investigators rap up their work.

Total Time: 1 minute and 53 seconds

Analysis:

This story is a very reactionary piece highlighting a potential threat within the community, in this case a repeat sexual offender. The focus is mainly on the victim, a 10 year old girl, whose youth becomes the attention grabber for the story. Note: 4 times in the story the girls’ age is mentioned. The amount of coverage she receives (interviews with relatives, footage of her room, where she lives, etc.) begs the question; what aspects of cases like this does the public actually have a right to know? In addition, the public might benefit greatly from being given information about sex offense crimes rather than interviews of scared victims that have little knowledge. Several local hotlines or counseling services throughout the area mentioned in a broadcast such as this could further aid community awareness on the issue, but none of those resources are provided.

Story:

WZZM 13 News reader – Twice in one week there are reports of a man exposing himself in Holland Township. Last Thursday a 62 year woman says a man was outside her window and early this morning a 10 year old girl was the reported victim.

Reporter – Juliet, the 10 year old child who lives near here says she was awakened early this morning by loud banging on her bedroom window. When she looked outside she saw a man out their touching his genitals and this is very similar to what a 62 year old woman says that happened at her house a week ago, just about a mile from here.

Victim’s father – He was standing right here banging on the window like this.

Reporter – Her father says his 10 year old daughter probably doesn’t really understand what the man was doing when she saw him outside her bedroom window.

Victim’s father – I don’t think she comprehends what’s really going on yet. When she gets a little older I think she will though. She said she just stood like this and looked out and he was standing there.

Reporter – The little girl says the White male was standing outside her window at 5:30 in the morning touching himself.

Friend of family – I don’t think she fully comprehends what happened, or what she saw, but you can tell she has been thinking about it a lot.

Reporter – One week ago there was another indecent exposure report about a mile away here on Butternut Drive. At 4:30 in the morning a 62 year old woman said she heard a noise, looked outside and saw a White male exposing himself.

Friend of family – They have been patrolling this road a lot more I noticed.

Reporter – Police say they are paying special attention to the areas where the lude acts were reported and residents are going door to door alerting neighbors.

Victim’s father – If he can be doing that, then tomorrow he could kidnap a kid or something.

Reporter – The 62 year old woman could only tell police the man she saw was White, but the 10 year old girl describes him as a younger man with spikey blonde hair, a moustache, maybe a goatee, average height and weight.

Total Time: 2 minutes